


Tell Me Where Your Heart Is, Tell Me Where You Keep It

by cyraclove



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Beginnings, Feelings Realization, Gift Exchange, I don't think this counts as fluff but it's sweet, Light Angst, Link (Legend of Zelda) Needs a Hug, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Pre-Calamity (Legend of Zelda), Pre-Calamity Ganon, Pre-Relationship, Pre-Slash, Revalink - Freeform, Slightly suggestive, bene_elim, they're idiots your honor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:35:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,709
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28321011
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cyraclove/pseuds/cyraclove
Summary: Mastering Medoh needed to be his focus, he would remind himself, not this amateur—this pathetic excuse for a champion. While Revali had spent countless, grueling hours honing his skill, all Link had done was stumble upon a sword. That they both trained for the same battle was the only thing that united them. Had Link not been Hylia’s chosen, Revali thought, he’d be nothing more than a lowly farmhand playing at being a warrior.In Revali’s mind, Link was still just that. He had to be. The alien ache in his chest from their interaction on the Flight Range would return if he allowed himself to consider otherwise.
Relationships: Link/Revali (Legend of Zelda)
Comments: 17
Kudos: 97
Collections: LoZ Writers' New Year Exchange 2021





	Tell Me Where Your Heart Is, Tell Me Where You Keep It

**Author's Note:**

  * For [bene_elim](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bene_elim/gifts).



> This fic was written for my friend Basil (bene_elim) as a part of the LoZ Writers' New Year Exchange 2021. It was such a joy to write for you, and I had so much fun exploring this ship. I hope that you enjoy it as much as I enjoy your works. Happy New Year, Basil! 
> 
> Thank you SO very much to our resident Rito expert, sturms_sun_shattered, for being beta for this fic. You are fabulous!

It began with a look. 

A stinging glare that lingered in his mind long after; a disdainful sneer that harbored something more than envy, something deeper than resentment. It had been enough to stun Revali into silence, for once, the way the young Hylian’s eyes bore into him from behind locks of sweat-drenched hair. 

Link had looked up at the Rito champion from where he’d fallen on the Flight Range landing, a thin stream of crimson blooming from his lip and dripping off of his chin, icy flecks of snow lashing at his face. Something foreign stirred in Revali’s chest as a shiver flew up his spine that chilled him more than the frigid Tabantha air ever had. 

Before he could open his beak to admonish Link for his poor form, to spit out yet another biting quip about his performance, Link wrested himself up from the ground. His blood painted the snow when he spoke, delicate pinpricks of red slowly sinking into the dense white. 

“Again,” he’d rasped, and snatched his bow up as he stood on shaky legs. 

As he watched the young man once again prepare to leap from the lofty landing with paraglider in hand, Revali suddenly and inexplicably found himself wondering what he might taste like in that moment, all iron and salt. 

It was  _ infuriating _ . 

In the weeks that followed, Revali attempted to keep his distance. Avoiding Link wasn’t too terrible a feat, as he was much too preoccupied with Zelda—as recalcitrant as she was royal. The Rito had even discovered her hiding around the village on numerous occasions, seeking a moment’s respite. Her emerald eyes would silently plead with him, and he would leave her be, feeling more akin to the princess than he would have thought possible. 

Mastering Medoh needed to be his focus, he would remind himself, not this  _ amateur _ —this pathetic excuse for a champion. While Revali had spent countless, grueling hours honing his skill, all Link had done was stumble upon a sword. That they both trained for the same battle was the only thing that united them.  _ Had Link not been Hylia’s chosen _ , Revali thought,  _ he’d be nothing more than a lowly farmhand playing at being a warrior.  _

In Revali’s mind, Link was still just that. He had to be. The alien ache in his chest from their interaction on the Flight Range would return if he allowed himself to consider otherwise. 

Sunrises turned over and twisted into sunsets as Calamity Ganon’s ever-looming shadow spread across Hyrule, swallowing what little hope its people still clung to as time continued to slip away. Revali memorized Medoh’s every mechanism while Link tirelessly trained, both somehow existing together and apart simultaneously. Zelda continued to pray. 

They all prayed. 

The chill of evening in the village was beautiful, albeit bitter, for the night winds brought with them silence and the scent of the pines. It was the only time when Revali was awarded with some semblance of peace, though he endlessly warred with his own mind—a turbulent sky of relentless thoughts that denied him true rest. To his chagrin, he often found that his most tumultuous thoughts were of  _ Link. _

It enraged him, being plagued by a man so much lesser than he. One sleepless night after another, Revali had managed to convince himself that it was simply because of the injustice of the entire situation. So unfair was it that Link had been awarded a position that he did not deserve, and Revali was merely trying to make sense of it all. It had nothing to do with the way he had felt those many weeks ago when Link’s stormy eyes had locked with his; how his breath had caught in his throat when he heard him speak for the first time. 

In fact, he’d all but forgotten about it. 

When he heard him speak a second time, winter had settled in entirely, shrouding Tabantha in a shimmering blanket of blinding white. He knelt by the small hearth in the center of his roost, watching the embers softly flicker and die. After a failed attempt at sleep, he’d decided to get an early start rather than wasting more time. He waited in the pitch of early morning for the sunlight to creep above Hebra Peak, a whisper of a breeze gently rustling his feathers. 

“You’ve been avoiding me,” a voice cut through the silence. 

His heart seized with that unwelcome, startling twinge of something that he had yet to name. Though Revali felt Link’s presence, he did not raise his head, keeping his gaze trained on the dying flames.

“The hero  _ can  _ speak in complete sentences,” Revali drawled, his tone dry. Out of the corner of his eye, Revali saw Link’s jaw clench. 

“I speak when I care to,” Link retorted, “and it’s not often that I do.” 

Revali scoffed, a mirthless smirk on his face. “To what do I owe such an honor, then?” 

“You’re supposed to be training me,” Link said, “but I’ve been trying to figure everything out on my own.” 

He let out a squawking laugh this time, cocking his head as he finally looked up. “Are you not Hylia’s chosen champion? He who wields the sword that seals the darkness, protector of the crown and savior of us all, yes? Surely, you don’t need  _ my _ help.” 

“When we first arrived here, you said that you w—” 

“When I said that I would show you how it’s done,” Revali snapped, making the end of Link’s sentence die in his throat, “I meant, of course, by besting you. Not by  _ teaching _ you.” 

Link inhaled deeply, eyes flashing beneath his knitted brow. The feathers adorning the shoulders of his Snowquill tunic fluttered slightly in the breeze as he took a seat on the stone floor opposite Revali, crossing his legs and resting his hands calmly on his knees. They regarded one another in silence from across the fire, their faces obscured by sparks of amber dancing above the flames. 

“I don’t recall inviting you to join me.” 

“Revali,” Link started, the very sound of his own name from the Hylian’s lips twisting the knot in his stomach, “I respect you. Your skill as a marksman is undeniably impressive…but I don’t have to tell you that. What I’m trying to say is that I  _ want _ to learn from you.” He paused then, his eyes trailing downward. When he spoke, a hint of a tremor colored his voice. 

“I need you to help me because I’m not ready. I’m…scared.” 

As satisfying as the admission of fear should have been for Revali, it wasn’t at all. Why, out of everyone, had Link chosen him to confide in? Surely Daruk was more of a mentor to him; Urbosa more of a sage than he; Mipha, with her gentle words and kind demeanor, would have been a better choice. The walls of pretense came crumbling down around him and all he felt was shame. Despite the posturing and the honorifics, Link was merely a  _ man _ —and he was frightened, just as anyone would be. 

Just as he was, though he dare not say so. 

Before he had a chance to even begin to register a response, he saw Link’s eyes grow wide as they flickered up towards the sky. Something had diverted his attention away from Revali entirely, his mouth parting slightly as he sat there, transfixed. Revali raised a brow at him. 

“And here I was thinking that we were having an actual conversation. What could you possibly be staring at?” 

“What  _ is  _ that?” 

Turning to look, Revali saw familiar, beryl-green rivers of light weaving their way through the twilight. Like a gleaming veil concealing some otherworldly place, the ethereal light hung in the air as if by magic, an ancient mystery to all. Distant stars shone through, accenting the deeply hued sky with pinpricks of white. 

“It’s just the aurora,” Revali said plainly, unwilling to admit that he was just as captivated now as he was the first time he’d witnessed it. 

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Link murmured, craning his neck to get a better view. 

Revali watched him then, his face aglow with viridescent light. Never had he thought that a grown man could look at the sky with the wondrous eyes of a child, and for a fleeting moment, it was he who was envious of Link. The light that he saw in him was as bright and as brilliant as the light above them, the likes of which he’d not seen in anyone. Perhaps in himself, long ago. 

Where had it gone? 

“Your eyes,” Link said, the sudden comment causing Revali to startle. 

He clucked his tongue. “ _ What? _ ” 

The corner of Link’s mouth quirked up as he shifted to face him, his expression soft. Revali felt his breath hitch as his entire body tensed in anticipation of the other man’s response. 

Link gazed back up at the aurora. 

“They’re the same color.” 

His damnable heart flew to his throat, any coherent thought evading him. Words were out of his reach now, language a distant memory. Revali’s mouth went dry as he turned away, trying desperately not to choke on his own tongue. 

“What a ridiculous thing to say,” he stammered as he rose to his feet. He heard Link chuckle softly. 

“Just an observation.” 

“Well, in the future, do keep your observations to yourself. It’s nearly sunup; I need to train. And so do you.” 

Revali turned to leave, longing to be anywhere else. He could have very easily taken to the skies right then, a powerful gust in his wake. He could be at the Flight Range in moments, his only focus his arrow and its target. Instead, he paused, cursing himself for what he was about to say. 

“Flight Range in an hour. We can start with that atrocious form of yours.” 

He took off, the force of his gale sending him soaring above the rooftops. Flying swiftly towards the mountains, an odd urge to look back nagged at him in the back of his mind. Relenting, he turned in enough time to catch a glimpse of Link standing at the railing of his roost, watching him. 

He was smiling. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



End file.
